In environments such as the lobbies and halls of commercial and government buildings, walls are often given a decorative appearance by installing contoured panels. These are sometimes fashioned from plain boards which are covered with fabric; in other instances, they may be fashioned from a series of decorative tiles which are similar to contoured ceiling tiles. Often, such contoured panels are installed not only for their decorative appearance, but also because their contours help to dampen echoes and thereby decrease ambient noise. Tile-like panels are often favored because they can usually provide a greater degree and variety of texture than a fabric-covered panel. Such tile-like panels are generally formed in the same manner as conventional ceiling tiles, with cementitious or other moldable material being cast into a desired shape, and/or with metal or plastic sheets being stamped into desired forms. With high-quality production processes, the panels can be quite beautiful, and when observed individually, each has the appearance of a high-quality work of art.
However, one drawback of these panels and their production methods is that they usually cannot provide significant variety in their appearance, particularly where large areas are to be covered with panels: because of costs, only a limited number of molds or stamps are produced, and thus a limited number of panel patterns/contours are produced. Thus, when the panels are hung, their patterns will eventually begin to repeat. This has the effect of diminishing the decorative effect of the panels, since they begin to become indistinguishable to observers. Additionally, their impact as artwork is greatly diminished: since they repeat, they convey the impression of being mass-produced, which detracts from their artistic feel. It would therefore be useful to have available methods of producing panels which reduce or eliminate these drawbacks.